Automobile body underframe and chassis structure



June 21, 1955 A. R. LINDSAY AUTOMOBILE BODY UNDERFRAME AND CHASSIS STRUCTURE 2 She ets-Sheet 1 Filed May 25, 1951 uvmvrox wmexander RLLndsay Y Ma 14 7 TOR/V5 Y June 21, 1955 R. LINDSAY AUTOMOBILE BODY UNDERFRAME AND CHASSIS STRUCTURE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 25, 1951 INVENTOR. Q Lexander RLLndsay ATTORNEY AUTOMOBILE BODY UNDERFRAME CHASSIS STRUCTURE Alexander R. Lindsay, Detroit, Mich., assignor to The Budd Company, Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation; of Pennsylvania Application May 25, 1951, Serial No. 228,155 1 Claim. (Cl.- 296-28) AND The invention relates to a combined body u'nderframe and chassis structure for automobiles.

Among the objects of the invention is a structure of the indicated type which, though light in weight, simple in construction, and easy to manufacture, has great strength and rigidity so as to be usable for automobiles of the open type in which there is no roof supplementing the strength of the underframe. The objects of the invention are mainly achieved by threshold sills, by end sillsbetween one of the pairs of wheels, and by the extension of outer and inner wheel housing stampings toward .posts connected with the threshold sills and the extension of the wheel housing stampings.

Further objects and features of the invention will become apparent from the illustration in the attached drawing and from the following description of one embodiment.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary three-quarter side and front perspective, partly sectionalized, of an open automobile y;

Fig. 2 is a corresponding perspective of the combined underframe and chassis structureof the automobile shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a view, partly sectional and partly exploded, of the underframe structure shown in Fig. 2, but without floor panel;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary cross section, on a larger scale, through dashboard and toeboard in the region of circle 4 of Fig. 1, but on a larger scale; and

Figs. 5 and 6 are fragmentary sectional views, on a larger scale, of the regions in circles 5 and' 6 of Fig. 1;

The automobile body structure shown in Fig. 1 is supported by front wheels 10 and rear wheels 11, the wheels being enclosed on the outside by sidewall panels or fenders 12, 13, respectively.

The front wheels are secured by means of brackets, levers and springs 14 to frontsill members 15 andto upwardly and rearwardly inclined braces 16. Member 15 and brace 16 on eachside of the body are connected to panel 17 forming one side wall for a motor compartment and skirt or inner wall of a wheel housing. Brace 16 is an inwardly facing hat-section secured to the outside of panel 17. The rear ends of braces 16 and panels 17 are secured to dashboard 18 and toeboard 19, which in turn are secured to the cowl sides 20 reinforced by front posts 21. I

Rear door posts 22 are adjoined by fenders or side panels 13 and inner wheel housing panels 23, 24. Fenders 13 are interconnected by the rear orjtonneau panel 25.

Front posts 21 extend upwardly on both sides; of the windshield opening 26 and are interconnectedby windshield header 27. There are, in the shown embodiment,

no side headers and no rigid roof interconnecting the front posts and the tonneau at the top. Consequently, the required strength and rigidity has to be supplied by the bottom structure interconnecting the lower-ends of front and rear posts. It is a main object of the invention a bracket 42 (Fig. 3) in the brace 30. Floor panel 29 rests on and is secured to an bers are secured to the respective r'ear post'22 so as V 7 2,711,340 Patented June 21,- 1955 to achieve asatisfactory solution ofthis difficult problem with simple, light, and-economicalmeans, now to be described.

The front and] rear body, have their lower nal threshold 1 sill 28. tend between-and end and rear wheel locations.

ends interconnected by alongitudi- 'The thresholds 28 on opposite sides of the body are interconnected by sheet metal floor panel'29. Thispanel merges at the'front intotoeboard 19. and extends at the rear between and around the locations for rear wheels 11.

The thresholds.,.2 8 are additionally interconnected by front and rear' braces 30,31. Brace 31 consistsofupwardly. facing lateral hat-sections 32 secured to the 'under- .side' a'nd of a downwardlyfa'cing secured to the top of floorpanel 29.. I Floor panel 29 is longitudinally reinforced in itsrearward region by-sidelsill members 34 which have their forward ends'secured to brace 31 at points inwardly spaced central hat-section 33 from the thresholds 28. 4 Forward sill membersIS are secured to cross brace 31.

This disposition of front sills '15,thresh'old s- 28,. and brace 31 means that bending stresses are-largely'transmitted across the location of the front and rear posts 21, 22 by means of the rearward extensions of front fendsills 15 andthat thresholds 28 are 1 39 of dashboard 18, as shown in Fig. 4.

Threshold 28 consists of an inverted channel-section 40 and a shallow channel-section 41. The closed box-section, so formed (Fig. '5), is interiorly reinforced by attachment region for cross '19 and by overlappingconnection with marginal flange offset 43 of the inner side wall ofsectlon 40. Y

The two members 23, 24 of the rear wheel housing overlap each other along their side front margins at 44, and the overlapping portions or extensions of said memto form a strong'brace for the latter, see Fig. 6.- The inner wheel housing panel .23 fits into the cut-out in the floor panel and is secured to the marginal'flange 45 thereof, Fig. 2.

The invention is not restricted to the details of the illustrated embodiment but 'is susceptible to modifications without departing from its basic principle. The invention may, for instance,-be used in connectionwith a closed automobile body: Althoughthemain purpose of the I invention is tosupply the necessary strengthiwhere there is no strength-giving roof "or side header structure, it is an important advantage that one type of underfrarne may be used for open as well as closed cars;

What is claimed is:

Combined body underfrarne and chassis structure for automobiles, comprising'an end portion restricted transversely to the space between locations for a pair of road wheels and a'mid portion extending transversely beyond the end portion into the :space longitudinally inboard of posts 21,22, onfeach sideYof'the:

.Theselsills, one on each -side,'ex-: at vtheflinboardsides of the front p front brace 30 and arerearwardlyextended therebeyond'; Themembers 15 extend laterally outwardly in rear of brace 30.and reach thresholds 28 in front of the rear wheel locations, where they are secured to the thresholds {together with door: openings between j brace 37 is formed by and adjacent said wheel locations, longitudinal threshold sills provided along the side margins of said mid-portion and terminating at said Wheel locations, longitudinal sills in said end portion inwardly spaced from said threshold sills and connected to the latter by a cross brace, posts connected with said threshold sills inboard of and adjacent said wheel locations, inner and outer Wheel housing stampings secured to the side margins of said end portion and having longitudinal extensions along their inboard sides, said extensions being secured to said posts.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Swallow Dec. 29, 1936 Sherman Feb. 23, 1943 Darrin May 1, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS France Mar. 18, 1929 

